In allegations that echo testimony in his Lehigh County homicide case, Jimmy “Superfly” Snuka has joined a class-action lawsuit against World Wrestling Entertainment that claims wrestlers sustained “long term neurological injuries” while working for the company, alleging it “routinely failed to care” for them.”
A judge in Allentown last month found Snuka, 73, incompetent to stand trial in the 1983 death of his girlfriend, Nancy Argentino. Snuka’s attorneys argued the wrestler suffers from dementia so severe that he’s unaware he’s been charged with homicide.
In the suit, filed Monday in U.S. District Court in Connecticut, where WWE is headquartered, Snuka’s attorneys allege that he suffers from “significant cognitive and neuropsychological impairment” as a result of “successive blows to the head during his wrestling career.”
The defendants, which include WWE owner Vince McMahon, are alleged to have “fraudulently misrepresented and concealed” the nature and extent of wrestlers’ injuries.
“Instead of upholding its duty to its employees, WWE placed corporate gain over its wrestlers’ health, safety, and financial security, choosing to leave the plaintiffs severely injured and with no recourse to treat their damaged minds and bodies,” the lawsuit states.
WWE officials denied the allegations in a statement.
A total of 53 plaintiffs are named in the suit, including former pro wrestlers Joseph “Road Warrior Animal” Laurinaitis, Paul “Mr. Wonderful” Orndorff, Salvador “Chavo” Guerrero IV, Chris “King Kong Bundy” Pallies and Terry “Sabu” Brunk.
All of the plaintiffs cite a mix of ailments including memory loss, headaches, migraines, mood swings, dizziness, fatigue, depression, loss of balance and difficulty sleeping.
Snuka also claims he suffers from anger and confusion from post-concussion syndrome. He does not allege that he has dementia, as some of the other plaintiffs claim.
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During the Lehigh County hearings in May and June to determine if he was competent to stand trial, defense experts testified that Snuka shows signs of dementia, but prosecution experts pointed to a lack of medical records to substantiate those claims.
Snuka is due back in court in Allentown on Aug. 2. Prosecutors have asked a judge to force the wrestler to undergo outpatient mental health care while the case is stayed.
Lehigh County Judge Kelly L. Banach has denied a prosecution motion to have Snuka involuntarily committed to a mental health facility to determine if he’ll ever regain competency.
Snuka, of Camden County, N.J., was charged in September with third-degree murder and involuntary manslaughter. A county grand jury last year determined that Snuka repeatedly assaulted Argentino, his mistress, at the former George Washington Motor Lodge in Whitehall Township, then left her in bed to die.
The charges came to light following a 2013 investigative report by The Morning Call on the 30th anniversary of Argentino’s death.
There is a gag order in the Lehigh case that prevents lawyers and witnesses from commenting.
Snuka is represented in the brain injury suit by his wife, Carole, who is also his legal guardian. During the competency hearing in Lehigh County, Carole Snuka described her husband as being so “oblivious” that he routinely gets locked in the family car because he cannot operate door handles.
In the lawsuit, Carole Snuka states that the WWE took advantage of her husband’s limited intelligence and lack of education. Jimmy Snuka was born in Fiji and did not attend high school.
“Snuka is illiterate, and although he cannot read or write, his wife alleges that the WWE had him sign stuff all the time,” the lawsuit states.
The suit describes wrestling stunts the plaintiffs’ lawyers claim caused Snuka’s alleged brain injuries. Snuka’s signature move was the “Superfly Splash,” in which he climbed to the top of the ropes and dived chest first onto his opponent.
One incident mentioned in the lawsuit, in which WWE wrestler “Rowdy” Roddy Piper famously struck Snuka in the head with a coconut during an interview, was also brought up in Snuka’s competency case.
Snuka’s attorney, Robert Kirwan, played a video of the incident in court, showing how the coconut smashed open as a result of the blow. Kirwan said a prop coconut, which was shaved thin to crack like and egg, was supposed to be used in the act, but Piper grabbed the wrong coconut.
The video played in Lehigh County Court showed Snuka writhing on the floor in pain after being hit. Prosecutors argued he was acting.
“Snuka recalls that at the time he sustained neurological problems as a result of being struck in the head, and he suffered dizziness and chronic headaches,” the federal suit alleges.
Other wrestlers cite “brutal” working conditions under the WWE and its predecessor, the World Wrestling Federation, including requirements to take part in hundreds of matches each year.
Chris Pallies, a 60-year-old Glassboro, N.J. resident who wrestled as King Kong Bundy in the 1980s and ’90s, says in the lawsuit that he was referred to as a “WWF product” by the company’s staff.
The WWE responded to the suit with the following statement: “This is another ridiculous attempt by the same attorney who has previously filed class-action lawsuits against WWE, both of which have been dismissed. A federal judge has already found that this lawyer made patently false allegations about WWE, and this is more of the same.”
According to published reports, the lawyer in question, Konstantine Kyros, previously filed lawsuits against the WWE with similar claims. The WWE succeeded in having some of those suits dismissed, reports say, but one involving wrestlers Vito LoGrasso and Evan Singleton is still being contested in court.
Similar class-action lawsuits have been filed against the NFL and NHL by players suffering brain injuries. In April, a federal judge upheld a settlement between the NFL and thousands of former players that could result in total payments of $1 billion.
Snuka and the other plaintiffs are seeking a jury trial and compensatory and punitive damages.
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